In Her Footsteps
by cyberimp6
Summary: A tale of those who wear black: Xellos encounters a certain wandering sorceress.


Disclaimer: Characters and concepts from "Slayers" are Copyright Hajime Kanzaka, Tommy Ohtsuka, and Rui Araizumi. This work is a parody and not to be used for any commercial purposes.

**In Her Footsteps **

Xellos arrived at the scene just after the fight had ended. His orders, after all, had been not to interfere, but to report on results. And it was easy enough to see that the results were lethal. The monster was dead, and the human was following in that direction.

But being neutral changed quickly when he recognized the survivor of the battle. Princess Amelia's face, pale and drawn, stared back at him as he stepped closer. He took in the wounds on her right thigh and lower abdomen as she lay with her back against a tree.

"Dear, dear, Miss Amelia." Xellos said with a calmness he was far from feeling. "You look like you've been in quite a fight."

"Mr. Xellos?" Amelia's voice was weak. "I . . . I think it's serious. The Recovery spell didn't do very much."

"That's not surprising, Miss Amelia." Xellos glanced over to what had been a half-crocodile, half-viper monster before it received an Elmekia Lance. "I'm afraid that creature's fangs were poisonous. One of Mistress Zelas' ideas that she gets every few decades. What are you doing here in the testing area?"

"There's a rumor that . . . my mother's ghost . . . has been seen here." Amelia said. "Mr. Xellos . . . if I don't . . . you know . . . could you try to . . ."

"Now, now -- let's not have any of that." Xellos began to clear his astral senses. "I can't do any healing myself, but maybe I can find someone who can." He teleported to the top of the tallest nearby tree, and sent his 'feelers' out as far as he could. This was important -- there was a debt that he owed.

There. A locus of that distasteful white magic, about a league and a half distant. "I think we may be in luck. Please try not to move until I get back."

" . . . Okay," Amelia's voice was now barely audible. Xellos realized she would lose consciousness soon. A pity he wouldn't be able to play a few mind-games with the newcomer first, but speed was going to be all-important. With a thought, he teleported.

Xellos had found that simply appearing out of thin air usually lead to more problems than it was worth. He had therefore chosen a point behind a tree from his objective. But when he stepped into the clearing, for once it was he who was startled. The stranger was a woman, but it was hard to imagine a woman less likely to be a practitioner of white magic.

She wore a dark cape, topped with wickedly spiked shoulder-pads. Her boots and her gloves were black, as was the remarkably skimpy remainder of her outfit. The only part of her outfit that was white were the cloth strips that were wound about her calves and apparently went down to her feet inside her boots. And rather than a holy symbol, her necklace featured a miniature skull as its centerpiece. Xellos recalled the style had been popular among human females who leaned towards the dark side around two centuries ago. Completing the outfit, an unusually large broadsword was slung at her hip, making her look still less like a priestess.

In spite of himself, Xellos opened his eyes and stared for several moments. Could he have been mistaken? He tried to get a better reading on the woman, but this close she positively radiated self-confidence, which caused him considerable discomfort. There was strong magic there, but it was difficult to tell whether it was black, white, or shamanistic.

"Oh ho ho ho!" The woman gave a loud, almost demented laugh that even Xellos found immensely irritating. "I see my beauty and taste in clothing has left you speechless!"

And now she had taken the initiative from him. This woman had unsettled him as no one since Filia had been able to do. Could she possibly be another dragoness in disguise? No, this was her true form. "You do indeed present a striking figure." Xellos remembered that he still needed this woman's help. "But as it happens, I'm in urgent need of a healer for an injured young woman a short distance away. If you'll forgive my saying so, your appearance speaks more of ability in offensive spells. But it is said that appearances are often deceiving . . ." He gave the woman a hopeful look.

She rose to the bait even better than he had hoped. "And it is said rightly! I am Naga the Serpent, mistress of many kinds of magic. And how do you style yourself?"

"Pleased to meet you, Naga. I am Xellos, the mysterious priest." Xellos became aware that although Naga was treating him politely, she considered herself to be higher in social rank than he was.

"I would be happy to help. Of course, such help deserves an appropriate consideration." Naga gazed at Xellos expectantly.

Xellos had become wealthy by human standards as a result of a certain transaction with Lina Inverse. He had found those odd little gold disks they called 'coins' very handy during their frequent stops at inns and taverns. "But of course. I have money, or if you prefer, one or two valuable items to trade. However, we really should hurry. Can you use the Ray Wing spell?"

"Mistress of many kinds of magic, as I said." Naga's smile broadened, but thankfully she didn't burst out into laughter again.

"Splendid," Xellos said. "I'll lead the way." With that, Xellos turned and took off back towards Amelia, hoping that Naga wouldn't notice that he had _not_ cast Ray Wing.

She didn't. "Ray Wing!" She chanted the spell almost as if she were announcing herself to the sky, and headed after him.

During the short flight, Xellos had a few moments to puzzle over his new acquaintance. Ordinarily he liked solving mysteries, but there was a good deal at stake here. Just how good was Naga at healing? Why was she wandering alone? If she was a sorceress for hire, why would she wear a villainess' outfit, and an outdated one at that? Had she been cast out of a coven of dark sorceresses?

His musings ended for the moment as they reached the tree that he had left Amelia beneath. As he had feared, the princess was now unconscious, and lay on her side where she had slumped over. Her traveling cloak now covered her except for her boots and her head. Her face was now very pale, almost white. Xellos swung his legs downward and landed, with Naga following moments later.

"Here she is," Xellos announced. "I think she's been poisoned by that creature over--" There was a sharp intake of breath, and suddenly the world seemed to go dark for Xellos. He blinked rapidly, but no light reached his eyes whether they were open or closed. And yet he could sense no spell affecting him. That meant some sort of physical barrier. A moment later he realized that Naga had moved forward so quickly that her cape had billowed over his head. He pushed it aside, and was about to make a complaint when he caught sight of Naga's face.

The cockiness was gone so completely that it was as if a different person was looking out of the sorceress's eyes. Her expression was now a grimly professional mask, but Xellos was now absorbing cold fear from her.

"De-Toxify!" Pale blue energy formed around Naga's hands and flowed into Amelia. A wave of light seemed to move through Amelia's body, and in a moment her skin looked less pale.

Naga then proceeded to take off her right boot and unwrap most of the white cloth that covered her foot. She tore it in half, than bandaged Amelia's two wounds. Xellos noticed, to his considerable confusion, that Naga did it mostly by touch, working with her hands under Amelia's cape.

"Recovery!" Naga said, touching Amelia's forehead. The young princess stirred a little, and her breathing became stronger. "Are there any other injuries? Any burns?" Naga's voice was almost clipped.

"No." Xellos answered simply. The fear emanating from Naga was not one of his preferred negative emotions. He did the spiritual equivalent of turning up his nose and inhaling as little as possible.

"Good." Naga stood and faced Xellos. "The last spell necessary is my own invention. I would appreciate it if you did not reveal it to anyone else."

"I won't breathe it to a living soul." Xellos knew that Beastmaster didn't really fall into that category.

"Excellent." Naga turned back to Amelia's unconscious form and gestured with fingers outstretched. "Corpus Restore!" A purple aura surrounded the young princess for a few moments, then faded, leaving no obvious change. "There's new skin over the wounds now, but it will be delicate for a few hours. Tell her to keep the bandages on until tonight. Then there won't be any scarring."

Naga bent down over Amelia, and brushed a stray lock of the girl's hair back into place. The fear that had been coming from her vanished, and suddenly Xellos felt as if his skin had been scraped raw and was being brushed with lemon juice. A flood of that most detested human emotion, love, was pouring from Naga. Xellos struggled not to show his discomfort, and to make sense of what was happening. "You've done an admirable job. Now, as to your remuneration . . ."

"Oh, this is on the house." Naga waved off the suggestion, in complete contrast with how eager she had been for a reward earlier. "It would be a shame for such a pretty girl not to grow up. She won't match my beauty, of course, but then again, who does?"

"Who indeed?" Xellos made a mental note not to let this woman meet Zelas. The clash of egos would be too explosive even for his sense of mischief.

"However . . ." Naga slid her boot back on. With most of the foot wrapping gone, it now fit rather loosely. "Perhaps you could tell me where I might find cloth to replace what I used."

"There's a weaver in the village to the southeast." Xellos kept his voice as light as he could under the emotional assault. High-level mazoku have their pride about showing weakness in front of humans they've just met. "But wouldn't it be wiser in the long run to buy a pair of boots that fit better?"

"Oh ho ho ho ho!" Naga gave another ghastly-sounding laugh. Xellos wondered vaguely if her voice or her emotions were causing him the most suffering. "It would be unthinkable to break up such a classic outfit! It is an original, after all!" She gave him a careful look. "I trust you will watch over her until she wakes up?"

Xellos realized that Naga was anxious to leave before Amelia regained consciousness. That was fine with him. He wanted Naga and her obnoxious positive emotions gone, and a little time to think. "Oh, yes. She'll be quite safe with me."

"Excellent. Naga the Serpent bids you farewell, Xellos the mysterious priest!" The sorceress turned, making her cape billow melodramatically, and began to stride towards the second village. In a few steps, however, her boot began to slide back off her right leg.

A sweat-drop appeared on the back of Naga's head, and she reached down to pull it back into place. "Ray Wing!" she chanted, and lifted into the air.

Xellos waited until Naga was behind the treetops, then almost collapsed as he sat down. The weakness dissipated, as he was able to absorb some of the anxiety flowing from Amelia even in her unconscious state. Now, what could explain the sorceress' behavior, and feelings?

Naga must know Amelia. Was it possible she was the ghost of Amelia's mother? The surges of emotion had certainly been powerful enough, but no. Xellos' astral senses would have told him. Naga was definitely flesh and blood -- a remarkable amount of flesh in certain spots. And she was too young to be the mother of a teenager. But wait -- didn't Amelia have a missing older sister?

Amelia stirred, and her eyes came slowly open, giving Xellos just time to put on his trademark smile. "Why, hello, Amelia," he said. "Your complexion looks much healthier now."

"Mr. Xellos?" Amelia looked confused for a few moments, and then she saw the bandages on herself. "Oh! You did it!"

"Well, I can't take too much of the credit." Xellos replied. "There was some rather impressive spell-casting by the one I summoned. It took a bit out of me, though."

"You mean a Resurrection spell?" Amelia knew that the powerful White magic healing spell took some of the life energies of those nearby.

"Not exactly, but a little like it." Xellos evaded, mindful of his promise not to reveal Naga's spell. "By the way, those bandages will be ready to come off in just a few hours. Until then, I think we should find someplace where you can recover and have a bite or two."_Or several dozen! _ he added silently, remembering that Amelia's appetite was not too far behind Lina's.

"That sounds like a very good idea." Wincing a little, Amelia sat up. "But won't you get in trouble with Beastmaster for interfering with her creation?"

"Oh, no need to worry." Xellos answered cheerfully. "She'll consider it a failure in any case, because you survived longer than it did. And she just needs to know the venom worked -- it's not necessary for her 'test subject' to actually die." Surreptitiously bracing himself with his staff, he extended his hand to help Amelia up.

"Oh." Amelia took his hand, and came to her feet. A suspicious look came over her. "But you know, that still doesn't explain why you went to so much trouble to save me."

"Now, that is a --"

"And don't try to tell me it's a secret!" Amelia countered.

"Heh." Xellos rubbed the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "Sorry. Force of habit."

"So, what's your reason?" Amelia pressed.

"Oh, it's nothing sinister." Xellos replied. "Do you remember Auntie Aqua?"

"The guardian of the Claire Bible copy? Of course."

"I rather liked her, didn't you?"

"Oh yes." Amelia nodded. "She was sweet."

"And I know she liked you. Since she saved us from Gaav, I'm sort of following in her footsteps." _I promised that day, Water Dragon King, that I wouldn't forget -- and I haven't. _ Xellos added silently.

"Just that?" Amelia asked.

"Well, there's another point." Xellos said. "Can you imagine Lina's reaction if she found out I'd simply let you die?"

Amelia shivered a little. "Just now I'd rather not imagine it."

"Well, shall we go?" Xellos waved in the direction of the second nearest village, in an entirely different direction than the one Naga had headed for.

"Okay," said Amelia, and the two started walking.

"By the way," Xellos said, "you mentioned a rumor of your mother's ghost being seen somewhere nearby?"

"That's right." Amelia nodded. "Mother was a wandering sorceress for hire before she met Daddy. She gave up that life to marry him."

"But palace intrigue proved even more deadly than adventures on the road." Xellos remarked.

"You know she was assassinated?" Amelia asked.

"Saillune isn't the most comfortable city for me to visit," Xellos smiled. "But I do try to stay informed."

"I'll just bet you do." Amelia's face grew sad. "I wonder . . . maybe it's possible Mother's spirit is trying to return to her old life. Maybe she can't rest because settling down--and having my sister and me--was a mistake for her. Mr. Xellos, do you think that's what's happening?"

Xellos absorbed Amelia's anxiety for just a moment before he answered. "Oh, I doubt it. For one thing, ghosts in this world are rare since our mutual acquaintance Hellmaster has departed. But I may have sensed something of your mother at work here." It was Xellos' usual style of being accurate while also being highly misleading. But he had found it was generally to his advantage to gather more information than he gave out. "Can you tell me a little more about her?"

"Well, before she met Daddy, she wasn't as concerned with Justice. But she did have her own code." Amelia added. "She never agreed to simply kill anyone, but sometimes she would make a bargain to bring in a criminal dead or alive."

"Sounds a bit like Miss Lina," Xellos remarked.

"Ahhh . . . I guess she was in a way." A wave of discomfort flowed from Amelia, and Xellos absorbed it, as a passer-by would breathe in the scents from a bakery. "Well, there was one difference. Mother wore an old Dark sorceress' outfit to intimidate bandits, even though she wasn't really bad. She confessed to me once that it was pretty . . . revealing."

Xellos suddenly had a good idea of what the outfit looked like. "Was that what attracted your father to her?"

"Only partly." Amelia blushed a little. "There were whispers about that. But mother told me herself that the reason they loved each other was he was the first person who appreciated her skill and her courage while still seeing her beauty." Amelia gave a wistful smile. "My sister was a lot like her. They both were very proud of their looks. Except . . . "

"Except?" Xellos encouraged.

"Mother was unhappy that her feet were larger than average. Other than that, Gracia was almost a copy of her." Amelia paused for a moment, then continued. "I kind of think it applied to magic, too. Gracia trained hard to become a white magic priestess, but her heart was never in it. Black magic just seemed to appeal to her more."

The pieces fell into place. _So, I'm not the only one paying a debt to someone departed_. Xellos mused. While there was a wandering sorceress wearing the outfit of old, Naga's mother was not wholly gone. "Now I'm sure of it, Amelia. I did sense something of your mother, but not as a ghost. You needn't search further for her. Wherever she may be, I believe she is content."

"Thank you for that, Mr. Xellos." Amelia's eyes shone with gratitiude for a few moments, and then took on a sterner expression. "I appreciate all that you've done for me -- but if you're to accompany me, we did make a rule."

Xellos sweatdropped. "Is that really necessary this time?"

"A rule is a rule, Mr. Xellos."

"Ahh -- very well." Xellos gathered his courage. "Life is wonderful . . . life is wonderful . . ."

T h e E n d

Author's note on spells: There is no "Corpus Restore" spell that I'm aware of, but Naga is known to occasionally come up with her own spells. It seems reasonable to me that she would create such a spell, since she has stayed unmarked in spite of the many times she's been caught in the blast of Lina's spells. However, "De-Toxify" does exist. Though is not listed in the compendiums of Slayers spells that I've been able to find, Naga casts it in the short "The Scary Chimera Plan".


End file.
